Virat Kohli has surged back into the top tier of world cricket, climbing to No. 2 in the latest ICC Men’s ODI Batting Rankings after a scintillating series against South Africa that yielded 302 runs and the Player of the Series award. Kohli’s scores of 135, 102 and 65 not out powered India to a 2–1 series win and brought him within just eight rating points of Rohit Sharma, who continues to occupy the No. 1 position.
The updated ODI rankings also reflect notable shifts across teams. South Africa’s Aiden Markram and Quinton de Kock rose to 25th and 13th positions respectively after scoring centuries in the series, while skipper Temba Bavuma moved up three spots to 37th. Among bowlers, Kuldeep Yadav’s decisive four-wicket haul in the Vizag decider lifted him three places to No. 3 on the ODI bowling chart.
The ICC also released new Test rankings, where Indian players remain prominent across categories. In the batting list, opener Yashasvi Jaiswal continues his rapid ascent, holding eighth place with 750 points. Test captain Shubman Gill sits at 11th with 730 points, followed by wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant in 13th at 704. Joe Root retained his No. 1 Test batting rank, while Kane Williamson moved up to second.
India’s strength in red-ball bowling remains formidable. Jasprit Bumrah leads the Test rating with 879 points, reaffirming his position as the premier Test pacer globally. Mohammed Siraj occupies 12th position, while Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav follow closely at 13th and 14th, separated by a single point — 694 and 693 respectively. Australia’s Mitchell Starc, meanwhile, climbed to a career-best No. 3.
In T20Is, the first match between India and South Africa in Cuttack triggered further changes. Opener AbhishekSharma tops the ranking with 913 points, while Tilak Varma goes down from 5th to 6th rank with 750 points. Suryakumar Yadav also goes down from 11th to 10th position in the list. Hardik Pandya climbed to fourth among all-rounders. Axar Patel moved to ninth in the same category and 13th among bowlers. Arshdeep Singh advanced to No. 20 and Jasprit Bumrah jumped to 25th after India’s commanding 101-run victory.
For India, Kohli’s return to the No. 2 ODI position is symbolic as much as statistical — a signal that his match-defining consistency remains intact ahead of a packed international calendar. With India’s senior and emerging players now occupying key positions across formats, the rankings reflect a side still shaping global cricket’s competitive landscape.
